CHONGQING (CQNEWS) -- With December now upon us, the Spring Festival of the Year of the Snake is fast approaching. According to reports from the Qunar platform, airfares show a downward trend as the Spring Festival travel rush kicks off, with several routes offering discounted fares. This week, air ticket bookings hit a two-month high, with the majority of reservations concentrated in the days leading up to New Year's Eve, indicating that the pre-sale of Spring Festival flights has quietly begun.

The volume of Spring Festival ticket bookings remains relatively low currently, but based on past trends, bookings are expected to increase steadily in the coming days. December is an ideal time to secure air tickets. By December 30, some routes are likely to experience ticket shortages. Once January 13 arrives, tickets for the New Year's Eve train will go on sale, leading to a significant rise in airfares. If passengers have already confirmed their travel plans, it is advisable to purchase tickets as soon as possible.

For most routes, ticket prices for return travel on February 3 and 4 (the sixth and seventh days of the first lunar month) will remain at full price. Qunar advises travelers to keep an eye on round-trip ticket prices during the Spring Festival travel rush, especially for popular tourist routes, and to book return tickets early. If possible, avoiding the peak return travel days will help minimize disruptions to travel plans.

From a pricing perspective, flights departing from major cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen are still relatively expensive. For tourist-heavy routes such as Beijing-Sanya, Beijing-Dali, and Shanghai-Xishuangbanna, economy-class tickets remain at full price, and the chances of discounts on these routes are minimal. However, for routes to cities like Chongqing, Harbin, and Guiyang, destinations that attract both tourists and return travelers, there are discounts of 7 to 9%. For major routes in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Chengdu, which mainly see business travelers, prices have dropped by up to 50% during the Spring Festival travel rush.

Flights from new first-tier and second-tier cities tend to be more affordable. For example, return flights from cities like Qingdao, Wuhan, and Xi'an are available at discounts ranging from 40% to 60% off.

In contrast, some "return" routes, such as Sanya-Beijing and Sanya-Hangzhou, have seen smaller reductions of around 20%, with prices on New Year's Eve marked at a 22% discount.

International flight bookings are also picking up. Qunar’s data indicates popular overseas destinations include Bangkok, Tokyo, Osaka, Seoul, Singapore, and Kuala Lumpur. Additionally, cities such as Athens, Greece; Berlin and Frankfurt, Germany; Hanoi, Vietnam; Vientiane, Laos; and Sydney, Australia have seen a dramatic rise in bookings, with interest more than doubling compared to last week.

Qunar’s data also reveals that flights from Beijing to Jiamusi, Harbin, Changchun, Chifeng, and Hailar, flights from Shanghai to Harbin and Dalian, and flights from Shenzhen to Haikou, Chongqing, and Nanchang, remain among the historically popular return routes.

Meanwhile, in preparation for the influx of tourists during the Spring Festival, various districts and counties in Chongqing have launched numerous initiatives. By the end of the holiday season, over 150 cultural and tourism-themed activities, more than 120 promotional offers, and 80 tourism routes will be introduced, including the 9th Chongqing Cultural Tourism Discount Consumption Season (Winter), the second season of the "360 Bowls of Chongqing Flavor" campaign, and special consumption activities for hot spring health maintenance. (Translated by Yuki, Fathom Language Limited)